Healthcare InformaticsDuring a July 13 U.S. Senate Committee on Finance hearing on the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA), Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Acting Administrator Andy Slavitt left open the possibility that the new sweeping changes set to overhaul physician payment could be pushed back from the intended start date of Jan. 1, 2017.READ MORE

HealthLeaders MediaFor the 10-year period between 2015 and 2025, national healthcare spending is projected to grow at a 5.8 percent annual rate, according to recent federal research. The 2016 National Health Expenditures Report, produced by the Office of the Actuary at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, projects annual healthcare spending to rise at a rate 1.3 percent faster than growth in the country's gross domestic product.READ MORE

Kaiser Health News via HealthLeaders MediaAt Edgewood Summit retirement community in Charleston, W.Va., 93-year-old Mary Mullens is waxing eloquent about her geriatrician, Dr. Todd Goldberg. "He's sure got a lot to do," she said, "and does it so well." West Virginia has the third oldest population in the nation, right behind Maine and Florida. But Goldberg is one of only 36 geriatricians in the state. "With the growing elderly population across America and West Virginia, obviously we need healthcare providers," Goldberg said.READ MORE

HealthLeaders MediaThe debate around maintenance of certification (MOC) has been raging for more than two years, during which some physicians have effectively changed the conversation around what it means to stay current in their profession. This week, I spoke with two of them: Paul Teirstein, M.D., is chief of cardiology for Scripps Clinic in San Diego, and creator of an alternative certifying body, the National Board of Physicians and Surgeons (NBPAS).READ MORE

Renal & Urology NewsUrine-DNA testing for bladder cancer may decrease the number of patients with gross hematuria who would need to undergo flexible cystoscopy, researchers concluded based on the findings of a prospective, blinded study. Flexible cystoscopy, the current standard for detecting bladder tumors, is costly, invasive, and imperfect, the investigators, led by Per Guldberg, Ph.D., of the Danish Cancer Society Research Center in Copenhagen, noted.READ MORE

MedPage TodayWhen the Affordable Care Act bumped up Medicaid primary care payments to Medicare levels during 2013 and 2014 to incentivize care for the poor, William Rodney, M.D., of Memphis eagerly signed up. With the extra $400,000 his practice received, Rodney opened an outreach clinic for bilingual uninsured and expanded hours to weekends. He also provided x-rays and ultrasounds, and upgraded other services at his four clinic sites in medically underserved Tennessee.READ MORE

The HillThe FDA touted the potential of 3-D-printed medical devices and drugs Thursday, releasing regulatory science research on devices already cleared and approved by the agency. The FDA issued draft guidance on 3-D-printed devices in May, which is currently open for comment until Aug. 8. James Coburn, the principal investigator for the FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health, highlighted the potential for advancements in personalized medicine through 3-D printing, also called additive manufacturing.READ MORE

HealthLeaders MediaPresident Barack Obama Monday called on Congress to revisit the controversial idea of providing a government-run insurance plan as part of the offerings under the Affordable Care Act. The so-called "public option" was jettisoned from the health law by a handful of conservative Democrats in the Senate in 2009. Every Democrat's vote was needed to pass the bill in the face of unanimous Republican opposition.READ MORE

Medical XpressMen with low-risk prostate cancer have a variety of treatment options because of the relatively benign nature of their disease. Among many factors that influence treatment decisions, the type of cancer center a patient visits is a key one, according to a study led by Yale researchers. Published this month in Urology, the study examined factors associated with "expectant management" – which includes observation and close monitoring – in men with low-risk prostate cancer.READ MORE

AuntMinnieAre radiologists really "wasted protoplasms" – as allegedly described recently by a CEO of a medical imaging start-up company – who can be easily replaced in the future with artificial intelligence (AI) technology? Not so fast, according to Dr. Eliot Siegel of the University of Maryland. Despite a number of predictions that it won't be long before computers obviate the need for radiologists, vast technical and even regulatory barriers will prevent that from happening for a very long time.READ MORE

UCLAUCLA researchers have identified the incidence and long-term outcomes of patients who develop second, unrelated cancers, resulting in a data set that they say sheds new light on the way cancer survivors may need to be monitored post-disease. The researchers identified more than 2.1 million patients from the Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results database, or SEER, with the most common cancers – prostate, breast, lung, colon, rectum, bladder, uterus, kidney, and melanoma and non-Hodgkin lymphoma.READ MORE

California HealthlineCalifornia is overhauling the way it collects information for its massive cancer database in the hope of improving how patients are treated for the disease.
Pathologists at a dozen hospitals in the state are part of a pilot project – the first of its kind in the United States – in which they are reporting cancer diagnoses in close to real-time to the California Cancer Registry. And they are using standardized electronic forms to make their reporting more consistent and accurate.
That represents a significant change for the registry, which traditionally relies on data up to two years old.READ MORE

The Associated Press via Napa Valley RegisterCovered California is preparing is preparing to release 2017 premium prices for people who buy health coverage through the state's health insurance exchange.
The recent announcement comes as many other states report big increases in insurance premiums for the fourth year of President Barack Obama's health overhaul.
Covered California sells insurance coverage to about 1.4 million people who don't get coverage from an employer, Medicare or Medi-Cal.READ MORE

NBC NewsFrustrated by the rising cost of prescription drugs, California health advocates hope sunlight and a dose of shame will discourage drug makers from raising their prices too quickly or introducing new medications at prices that break the bank. They're promoting legislation that would require drug makers to provide advance notice before making big price increases. Pharmaceutical companies have come out in force against the measure, warning it would lead to dangerous drug shortages.READ MORE